Dream Tropes Wiki/Grand Finale
When a show (usually of the Failure Is the Only Option or Stern Chase variety) comes to an end with sufficient lead time, the production team may decide to go out with a bang by ending the endless chase, destroying the undestroyable foe, or in some other way definitively and permanently changing the core axioms the show depends on. It usually resolves all the conflicts that have driven the series over its entire run, and offers some kind of resolution to the dramatic tension that they have powered. This is the Grand Finale, a way of very clearly saying to the audience "Okay, the show is really over. There's no more. Go watch something else." (That this doesn't always get through to viewers can be a problem in and of itself...) If this happens without warning, it's a case of The Resolution Will Not Be Identified. In contrast to American television series, anime series tend to be single, continuous season-long stories that build, like an episodic novel, to a climax in the final episode. In these cases, a Grand Finale is the only fair (and the usual) way to end the show. Of course, since most anime is based on manga, occasionally the anime gets ahead of the manga (or gets canceled before the manga ends) and the anime writers have to make up their own ending, which is usually not as good as the eventual ending of the manga. Alternatively, a la Bastard!!, Angel Sanctuary, and Strawberry 100%, the writers can just leave it hanging. May often involve Gondor Calls for Aid or "Save the World" Climax. Expect Tear Jerker on a massive scale—the longer (or more beloved) the show, the more tears will flow. Contrast with Cut Short, The Resolution Will Not Be Televised, and Series Fauxnale. Compare with Season Finale and sometimes Wrap It Up, though if the "Holy Shit!" Quotient is high enough it can qualify as a Wham Episode. There will usually be Call Backs, Continuity Porn, Continuity Nod and Book-Ends aplenty, along with characters coming Back for the Finale. A Will They or Won't They? running for the length of the series will usually get a Last Minute Hookup. Expect to see Contractual Immortality and Joker Immunity thrown out the window. Given its nature as being the very final entry of the series, there may even be some End-of-Series Awareness. As this Trope deals with endings, it obviously comes with a SPOILER WARNING. Examples Film - Animated *''Sagwa: The Movie'' is intended the grand finale for Sagwa, the Chinese Siamese Cat. * Melanie's Mega Movie is the finale for Melanie. Live-Action TV *The last edition of VTV NHL Hockey (which is a simulcast of a 1989 Stanley Cup game from Hockey Night of Canada on CBC) on Vlokozu Television finished its run, stating that after 29 years, the program came to the close. Shortly afterwards, El TV Kadsre Television Network purchased Vlokozu Television and rebranded to El TV Kadsre 4, whilist the Hockey Night in Canada games will be moved to Banushen Television starting with the 1989-1990 NHL season. Category:Dream Fiction Wiki